Why, my mother even taught me
to PREPARE FOR EMERGENCIES – like, “Be sure to put on clean underwear, just
in case you are in an accident.

Seriously, prominent men
of history have acknowledged the significance of motherhood.

Abraham Lincoln,
the sixteenth President of the United States, readily acknowledged, “All
that I am and can ever hope to be, I owe to my angel mother.”

Ralph Waldo Emerson,
an American writer of the 19th Century, wrote, “Men are what
their mothers make them.”

Napoleon Bonaparte,
who conquered most of Europe some two centuries ago, admitted, “The destiny
of the child is always the work of the mother.”

Of course, there are other
influences upon us other than our mothers; but surely, the influence of our
mothers is great! The first mother was called “Eve” because she
was the mother of all living. The Bible has much to say about the
responsibilities and rewards of motherhood.

A very vivid description
of a good woman as a wife and mother is found at: Proverb 31:10-31.

Discussion:

I.MARRIAGE AND HAVING CHILDERN IS GOD’S WILL FOR THE HUMAN RACE.

A.To the first man and woman here upon earth, God instructed them to, “Be
fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth,…” (Gen. 1:28).

1.Their first three children were sons – Cain, Abel and Seth. And
the scripture reveals at Genesis 5:4 that they had other sons and
daughters.

B.
In the New Testament at First Timothy 5:14-15, “I will therefore that
younger women marry, bear children, guide the house, give none occasion to the
adversary to speak reproachfully. For some are already turned aside after
Satan.”

1. But someone may say, “But that passage refers to young
widows!” -- This is true; however, the principle involves young women in
general.

2.There is another passage that definitely refers to young women in
general.

At Titus 2:4-5,
instructions are given to older women to “…teach the young women to be
sober, to love their husbands, to love their children, To be discreet, chaste,
keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands that the word of God be
not blasphemed.”

II.BUT NOT ALL WOMEN DESIRE TO HAVE CHILDREN.

A.Some social butterflies do not want to be bothered with having and
raising children.

1.Some of these women are afraid that their figures will be “hurt” if
they do have children.

2.Still others postpone having children. There is the possibility that
they may wait until it is too late for them to physically have a child.

B.Just being a biological mother has not completed their responsibility.

1.Some mothers and fathers have actually abused their children. There
have been some parents who have actually murdered their children.

C.Many young ladies look forward to a career in the business world rather
than to bearing and rearing children.

III.BUT THANKS BE TO GOD THAT THERE ARE STILL YOUNG LADIES WHO LOOK
FORWARD TO MARRIAGE AND HAVING CHILDREN.

A.In the Capitol of the United States there stands a 12 foot high
statue of Abraham Lincoln.

1.His mother Mary Hanks Lincoln gave birth to a baby boy on
February 12, 1809 and named him Abraham.

A.Timothy was molded by a mother and grandmother who recognized the one
true God.

2 Timothy 3:15,
“…from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures,…”

2 Timothy 1:5,“…I
call to remembrance the unfeigned faith that is in thee which dwelt first in
thy grandmother Lois, and thy mother Eunice;…”

1. Without Martin Luther’s mother there might
not have been a Reformation.

2. Without the mothers of such men as Barton Stone
and Alexander Campbell, there might not have been a Restoration.

3. Without George Washington’s mother, he would
not have been the father of our country.

Conclusion:
And if it had not been for the influence of two women in my life, I would not
be preaching today. Those women are my wife Charlotte and my
beloved mother who departed this life more than thirty-seven years
ago.

It is my prayer that there
are young mothers, as Christians, who will influence their sons to become
elders, deacons, song leaders, and gospel preachers in the church of our
Lord. There is a need for mothers who will teach their daughters to live good
moral lives as Christian.